Photo by Christopher Duggan
Photo by Ben Mckeown
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Luke Hickey, "never unmusical" (New York Times), is a NYC based tap dancer, choreographer, teacher and actor hailing from Chapel Hill, NC, and was named by Dance Magazine among their "25 to Watch" in 2020. Hickey began studying at the age of seven with his lifelong mentor, Gene Medler (JUBA Award recipient). Under the tutelage of Mr. Medler, Hickey spent 10 consecutive seasons studying and touring with the internationally acclaimed North Carolina Youth Tap Ensemble (NCYTE). In addition to the his study with Medler, he is also an alumnus of the School at Jacob’s Pillow and Pace University NYC (BA Film & Screen Studies, BA Communications Studies, cum laude). Since 2018, Hickey has been a company member of MacArthur Fellow, Michelle Dorrance’s acclaimed company, Dorrance Dance.
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His choreographic career began with the debut of his evening-length work, "A Little Old, A Little New," which premiered at the world famous Birdland Jazz Club. The work later traveled to Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, Battery Dance Festival, the Joyce Theater's season at Chelsea Factory and headlined the American Dance Festival's fall series in 2022. "In This Time" was a site-specific work commissioned by Little Island for their Music and Dance Festival in 2022 and was restaged at the 92NY for their inaugural Uptown Rhythm Dance Festival. Hickey's newest solo project is "Strike," his percussion ensemble which has played The Glade at Little Island and Birdland Jazz Club. Hickey's choreography can also be seen in Patrick Wang’s feature film "A Bread Factory: Part II," which was listed on The New Yorker's "The Best Movies of 2018." With Dorrance Dance Productions, he and longtime collaborator Elizabeth Burke are currently touring their work, A Swing Suite, now into 2026 across the United States.
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Hickey has had the honor to perform with artists including Grammy winners Arturo O'Farrill and Keyon Harold, Michelle Dorrance, Elizabeth Burke, Paul Arslanian, Marcus Gilmore, Ayodele Casel and Cartier Williams. Recently, Hickey has performed with acclaimed drummer Allison Miller in her multi-disciplinary show, "Rivers in Our Veins," at the Detroit Jazz Festival, The Strathmore, Savanna Music Festival, and on WNYC's hit radio show Soundcheck.
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Hickey is very passionate about teaching and educating the next generation of tap dancers. He has been on faculty at Harlem School of the Arts, guest faculty at STEPS on Broadway, and tap dance festivals around the world including the North Carolina Rhythm Tap Festival, American Tap Festival, Stockholm Tap Festival, Tap City Tap Festival, SMASH (Mexico), Oslo Tap & Swing Explosion, RIFF Dallas, Chicago Human Rhythm Project, and the Monterrey Tap Festival.
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Stage: Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Appel Room; The Kennedy Center; Guggenheim Museum; Oslo Jazz Festival; Joyce Theater; Detroit Jazz Festival; Ravello Music Festival; MGM National Harbor; New Victory Theater; LA's The Ford Amphitheater; New York City Center; The Music Center at Strathmore.
Film: The Bride! dir: Maggie Gyllenhaal; A Bread Factory dir: Patrick Wang; Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back (Documentary) dir: John Carluccio; Thank You For Your Patience dir: Marcus Fahey
TV: I Love Susu (Pilot); The Mind of a Murderer (ID Channel); I Blue Myself (Blue Man Group Campaign).
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